News in the District

Vacaville High School invites all 8th grade students and their parents/guardians to learn more about the exciting programs and opportunities offered at VHS at their 8th Grade Parent Orientation Night. This event will be held on Wednesday, March 7th, from 7:00pm-8:00pm in the Vaca High Gym.

The recent school shooting in Florida is a horrible reminder that our worst nightmare is happening more and more. As we move forward through our fear for our own children and grief for families at Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School, I wanted to share what VUSD has and will continue to do to address school safety.

School violence is a complex issue. As a district we have worked to identify the aspects of school violence beyond legislation that we can directly control and impact in our schools.

As adults, the action that we can take today which serves as the foundation for a positive school climate is helping students understand the importance of respect, compassion, understanding and support of each other; face to face, on social media, at school and at home. We can model this behavior and help students look for understanding of each other. Our schools serve students with a wide range of emotional, physical and intellectual needs and it is important that we foster a culture that is inclusive of everyone. Sometimes behaviors we witness are misunderstood or present an opportunity to provide a student with needed support. However, consistent and understood consequences for students who choose to threaten, demean or bully others at school or online is also key.

A consistent and clear emergency response plan is also vital in keeping our students safe and addressing any potential threat on campus. We are in our fourth year of practicing the Standard Response Protocols (Lockdown, Lockout, Evacuate, Shelter). This plan was developed with guidance from the Vacaville Police Department. Vacaville PD is at the center of all our emergency responses and their expertise and support has been invaluable. A police sergeant and four school resource police officers are based on school campuses and serve all of our schools with safety and crime issues. Our emergency plan also includes monthly drills for students and staff as well as trainings for parents. I invite you to attend our next parent-training event on February 27th at 5:30 PM at 401 Nut Tree Road.

Our 2017-18 educational plan (LCAP) has also included funding and programing to systemically address social and emotional wellness for students. Each school has adopted systems of Positive Behavior Interventions and Supports (PBIS) that include teaching positive behaviors and offering a wide range of supports to fit each individual student’s needs. This includes sixteen mental health clinicians, therapists, and interns, school counselors, deans at secondary schools and school administration. The City of Vacaville also has a community service officer, two master social workers, family support workers and program managers who work to serve and support VUSD students as well.

Positive school climate and safety is an ongoing effort that must be the highest priority for the school district, parents, students, city and our community. Supporting students positively as they grow not only effects our school environment but our city as a whole.

If you have any questions or concerns about safety, please reach out to your school principal, district administration listed below or myself.

School shootings are a terrifying thought for every parent and educator. Student safety is always in the forefront for us as a community. Given yesterday's tragic events in Florida, we thought we would share the following upcoming events that are part of our annual calendar to address school safety.
The first is our district wide Emergency Operations Center Training on February 27th that includes all of our schools and departments in executing an EOC with the focus on the logistics of keeping our students safe and accounted for in a disaster.

The second is an informational meeting for parents, reviewing our Standard Response Protocols as well as our Standard Reunification Method Protocols, also on February 27th from 5:30-7:00 PM in the Educational Services Center Board Room at 401 Nut Tree Road.

Finally, March 15th is our annual district-wide school Lockdown Drill. The drills will be happening throughout the day at every school site. Each site creates a different scenario to practice each year, for example a school might elect to trigger the drill during passing period or recess rather than in the classroom so that students can practice the procedures under various circumstances.

The Vacaville Police Department is an integral partner in keeping our kids safe. All of our protocols are created in collaboration with VPD. More information about VUSD's emergency response protocols can be found at http://www.vacavilleusd.org/SRP. Please feel free to contact Jennifer Leonard at (707)453-6155 with any questions or comments.